Product: Reverend Kingsnake 20/60 112 Combo Price Paid: USD 800
Submitted 07/21/2008
at 07:44pm
by 7Thson
Features
:10
Very straight forward and basic. These have already been covered. I bough this on the recommendation of two local Blues/Roots/Rockabilly players for it's durability and sound. After lugging it around for five years I've really come to appreciate the light weight, 32 pounds. I'm getting old, so this matters. The UK-US-LoFi switch makes it very versatile. I'ts not a modeling amp, but gives 3 great basic tones you can color with pedals.
Sound Quality
:10
I play a variety of styles, Classic Rock, Blues, R&B, Funk, Rockabilly, Roots and Bluegrass. It's all good and it changes with my mood. This amp gives me good clear tube driven sounds for all styles. the UK setting is good for Jazzy blues and R&B, clear and crisp. I might add a compressor for lead and chorus for 70's Funk, but it can chang with the best of them. the US setting is a good Fender/Ampeg clean. It can stand alone pretty well. I use a variety of effects on this setting. Blues Driver & Delay for slide. Add a Marshall Bluesbreaker and Supervibe for Classic late 60's Rock and Roll. The Lofi is really my favorite, think Supro Thunderbolt. Set the Volume at 10 and us the gain for volume. Add Blues Breaker pedal for grit, Think Rufus Thmas "Walking the Dog" or Tom Waits "Sawfish Trombone". It's all there.
Reliability
:10
It came from the previous owner with a bad reverb tank. He was up front about it. So, I replaced it with the right one and never had a problem since. I did have a tube crack and take out a resistor, but you can't blame the amp for that. It was over 100 in the shade, It was played for about 6 hours and there was an abundance of complimentary adult beverages available.
Customer Support
:10
Reverend won't service these anymore. But you can call them and they'll talk to you, nice people. I got the schematic and have local techs do the work. They say it's pretty straight forward, easy to work on and would be more than willing to take it off my my hands for what I paid.
Overall Rating
:10
I've been playing off and on for 40 years. I've gigged, but I'm an amateur. I play for the simple joy of it. I do play a lot though. I put 10 - 20 hours on this every week. My other amps are a Fender 63 Vibroverb Reissue, Fender Bassman Silverface, and a Red Knob Champ 12. In the past I've used mostly Fender, Sunn and Ampeg riggs. When I bought this I was actually trying to find a Supro, but couldn't believe what they were going for. My guitars are mostly Guilds and Fenders. Guild Starfire, Guild Sprint (strat), My acoustics are a Guild D-25 and a Songbird. I use a Fender Tele MIJ and a Danelectro DC-9 for slide. My pedal board is pretty simple, Budda Wah - Boss TU2 Tuner - Marshall Bluesbreaker II - Boss Blues Driver - Compressor - Boss Delay - Marshall Supervibe. It's not the best, but enough for me. If it were lost I would check in to rehab, it it was stolen I would hunt them down. I don't think it would be easy to replace. If you find one get it. I does a lot for 32 pounds.
Product: Reverend Kingsnake 20/60 112 Combo Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted 12/06/2007
at 04:18pm
by Bob
Features
:9
I bought this direct from Reverend well over a year ago and have used it for several gigs. Read the specs in the other reviews. It came shipped with only a single preamp tube cover. There are some audiosnobs that insist they add noise. I'm old school enough to stand by the "adds shielding" argument and had Joe send me some more. The AC cord is a bit short and scrawny for an amp for gigs and the knobs are sorta hard to read on a dark stage. The feet on the bottom don't inspire confidence in their durability. Overall though it's pretty nice for an amp under a grand. It's a great "set it and leave it" amp and offers a wide variety of tones to mess around with. I dig the Jensen Neo speaker now that it's broken in too. Very clear and hi-fi.
Sound Quality
:9
The US setting is the amp's uneffected setting and sounds nice and clear. Overall it lacks a little bass response if you're expecting it to sound like a Fender. In fact all of the suggested settings in the owners manual are a bit lacking if you only run it through the single twelve inch speaker. Adding a two-twelve cab (I got a matching Reverend cab) opens things up considerably. However, for rehearsal and small gigs it does okay as a combo amp. The Low-Fi and UK settings sound like they're done by adding clipping diodes into the circuit. At lower volumes or gain settings they sound a bit harsh and artificial. However they sound pretty good if you actually crank it up. The 20/60 watt switch is a great option. Overall it sounds very clear. The mid control is where much of the action is for tone tweakage. The high end is very sweet and never shrill. That said, you have to balance everything to get what sounds like a decent amount of low end if you're playing by yourself. Playing in a band with a bass player covering the low end it's not an issue. It's a great live amp, but not necessarily a great at home amp. The reverb sorta stays in the background and doesn't swamp everything like on a Fender amp. I've warmed up to this and now think it's a good thing, even on surf instrumentals.
Reliability
:10
Already lost a foot and made the trip to the hardware store for a set of replacements. Overall it feels a little cheezy but nothing has really happened yet. I've had to retighten the thin feeling handle once. It's all very light weight, which is nice. Nothing has broken, but the EH tubes were pretty awful and low powered. Once I swapped them for some JJs the thing came to life. Wile it doesn't strike me as a super-durable amp I could be proven wrong. Electronically speaking I've had no performance issues.
Customer Support
:10
Reverend is a pretty cool company. They back their products as defined by their warranty and are very responsive to their customer's wants and needs. Joe sent my extra tube shields to me for free and freely chatted with me regarding the amp. I don't see eye to eye with him on everything, but that's what makes the world go 'round. While they no longer service their amps it shouldn't be too hard for a decent amp tech to take care of anything that might go wrong.
Overall Rating
:10
I've been playing guitar for 31 years. 25 of those I've been playing professionally or semi-pro. I like everything from Bob Wills to Sonic Youth. This is a great amp for gigging. It offers a variety of sounds that hint closely to other famous big name amps and can do several on it's own. You really have to own one for a while and play with it to see what it really can do. It's short comings only lie in it's use as a "play at home" amp. At gigs where you can open it up it's a wonderful thing. As with most amps, backing off too much with the master volume kills tone and responsiveness. The combo with a two-twelve cab and the 20/60 switch can go from 20 watts with a single speaker to 60 watts with three speakers and anywhere in between. This covers just about any gig you'll encounter these days. Great clear sound and wonderfully voiced for both clean tones to overdriven old school grind (think "early Marshall"). Small and light weight and I guess durable enough. I really can't complain as I bought it for gigs and I have a light weight, compact, and great sounding amp rig. Buy one if you can find one.
Product: Reverend Kingsnake 20/60 112 Combo Price Paid: USD 700
Submitted 07/02/2007
at 01:30pm
by Sir Duke
Features
:9
The amp is quite easy to get around. There aren't a plethora of unnecessary dials/features. Unlike other amps i've used, there isn't really a bad setting on this amp.
Notables: effects loop, 20/60 watt switch (very cool), spring reverb, tube amp, 3 different amp tones (UK, USA, Lo-Fi)
Sound Quality
:10
This amp sounds great. I play a Baker Guitar through various effects and get no noise.
My pedal setup is: Budda Wah > Maxon OD-9 > Ernie Ball Volume Pedal > Pigtronix EP-1 > Pigtronix Echolution
The US and UK options offer two distinct and sweet amp sounds. The Lo-Fi option is sort of a a darker US tone, which I use infrequently. One qualm: the upper register of the guitar sounds transparent and has little sustain. I'm going to swap the stock tubes to see if this warms the tone up a bit.
I use a Maxon overdrive pedal for solos or when I need to give the amp a hard rock edge.
The overdriven tone is very focused without any muddiness. The low end sounds especially tight. There is plenty of clean headroom, especially in 60 watt mode. The 20 watt mode is perfect for jamming and playing small venues. Also, the reverb sounds great.
Reliability
:9
I???ve had to tighten a loose input jack a couple times. Nevertheless, the amp is built quite solid. It is also incredibly light, which is an essential feature for anybody who moves amps around for jamming or gigging.
Customer Support
:No Opinion
I never had to deal with customer service. The amp, however, is discontinued.
Overall Rating
:10
I play jazz, classic rock, blues and funk. I have played guitar for 11 years.
This is a great amp that has brilliant value for money. I'll be keeping it around until the end.
The Kingsnake has also gone up in value since is has been released. Money!
Product: Reverend Kingsnake 20/60 112 Combo Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted 12/18/2006
at 08:28am
by Bosco
Features
:No Opinion
Kingsnake Combo 20/60
Sound Quality
:No Opinion
Solid tube sounding amp. Used to get very loud. Nice gain section.
Reliability
:No Opinion
Not too good. Amp has failed after a year and a half. Works for a few minutes then shuts down. This is my brother's amp. He's an electronic tech and has checked fuses, etc. Seems to think its a power transformer but is hesitant to open it up pending feedback from Reverend. So far no response from Reverend. Any user advice is appreciated.
Customer Support
:No Opinion
Not very good so far. Awaiting response to my e-mail.
Overall Rating
:No Opinion
This baby would have gotten a 9 while it was working. At present, she gets a zero.
Product: Reverend Kingsnake 20/60 112 Combo Price Paid: US $725
Submitted 03/04/2006
at 01:37am
by Joey
Features
:10
Great single channel all tube guitar amp. Destined to be a classic.
I play rock & roll, Sones, Black Crowes style. The Kingsnake is amazing. Beautiful overdiven/semi/overdriven Fender/Marshall tones.
Depending on where you set the "schizo" switch affects what character the amp has. It's sort of like scooped grindy Fender, pushed barking Marshall, and old Supro.
If you change the tubes you can GREATLY change the sound of the amp.
The amp comes with Electro Harmonics 6L6GC's and EH 12AX7's in all the pre-amp slots.
If you change the 1st pre-amp tube to a GE JG-5751 (go to the tubestore.com) you can clean up the amp greatly and still keep all the warmth.
Even more important: To my ears (and to other people's ears from what I see), the original EH 6L6's are brittle & hard sounding in the mids and treble.
Changing the power tubes to S.E.D. 6L6GC ("C" Logo) makes a DRAMATIC change in the EQ of the amp. The SED's soften up the midrange of the amp (which is really "hard" with the EH's). The SED's also round off the harsh top end and bring in a lot of warmth. I have two Kingnakes and I put SED's in both tho the same effect. The difference between the EH's and SED's is huge, Absloutely upgrade the tubes.
Reliability
:10
I have gigged with both Kingsnakes and it is a solid, warm, great sounding amplifier. No problems.
Customer Support
:No Opinion
The Reverend Amps are made with great care & quality, but the company has stopped making them. There is really no customer service. But the same is true for any vintage gear.
Overall Rating
:10
I have great gear, classic Fender & Marshall amps. To be honest, I only gig with the Reverend amps. They are small, convenient and sound fantastic. The KIngsnake is this tiny little amp that houses a 12" speaker and sounds like classic rock, all by itself. I set the amp "almost" clean and with the right distortion pedal I can get any type of sound I want..
This little amp is SUPER light. No doubt the lightest all tube 60 watt amp ever made. A steal for the money. Lilke some of the other reviewers here said, this amp is going to be a classic one day. I'm never selling mine. Have had many amps. This is a keeper. No need to lug around a heavy amp to get the greatest guitar sound.
Product: Reverend Kingsnake 20/60 112 Combo Price Paid: US $750 used
Submitted 01/30/2006
at 12:09pm
by Mac-P
Email: jamming<at>optonline dot net
Features
:10
2005 Reverend Kingsnake Combo.
Legendary, all tube guitar amp, including tube driven reverb, effects loop, 3 position "schizo" switch, Jensen Neo 100 watt speaker. Power is switchable from 60 to 20 watts. Whole combo is 32 lbs total.
This is a "single" channel amp but only in the sense that you cannot channel switch. There are so many great sounds in here that the Reverend literature assures the reader that the Kingsnake "is not a modeling amplifier". Channel switching would have been great, but would have put this amp in the price range of way over $1000 new (I set my amp to one sound anyway, so it is not an issue). These amps sold for $700 plus shipping brand new which was a STEAL. They are going for much more on eBay (if you can even find one - good luck). There is NO amp that has sound quality like this at this price. It just doesn't exist.
It is an all tube combo that can go from sparkly clean to AUTHENTIC Marshall tones. Many amps claim it, but the Kingsnake (and it's simpler older brother the Hellhound) actually do it.
The amp uses a PCB (printed circuit board), but it is not a "budget" type thing. The knobs, tube sockets etc are hand wired. So there is the cost effectiveness of the PCB with the quality of the hand wiring. The work is neat and exudes quality. Very ingenious.
They use a combination of imported and domestic parts which is another reason why the amp is not super super expensive. The amps are assembled here in the USA by the Reverend guys led by amp gurus Joe Naylor (Naylor Amps) and Dennis Kager (Ampeg Amps). Their "outside the box" approach to amp design is most welcome. Especially the way they were able to design a "boutique" sounding amp that a working musician can afford. High marks all the way around! Absolutely.
Sound Quality
:10
The sound quality of the Kingsnake is awesome. That is the most important point and the bottom line. Very detailed, complex and musical. The pre-amp gain is ...."perfect". They have it nailed. Clean and musical with no fuzz. VERY VERY Marshall-esque, but can also do the Fender-y thing (see below).
People have a strong misconception about this amp I think. First off, no matter what anyone says, this amp is much more Marshall than Fender. Yes, it uses 6L6's, but it is a midrange oriented amplifier rather than a "scooped" amplifier like a Fender. The classic tube Fender sound has a bigger and fatter low end. But as you know, and as I know, how many times have you actually kept the bass of your Vibrolux or Pro Reverb all the way up. Exactly. If you need to pin the bass on an all tube Fender amp, your guitar probably needs a fixing. :-)
The Kingsnake combo's low end is more akin to a Marshall. It is tighter and more focused than a Fender. There is more than enough bass. I usually keep it at 12:00 depending on the room. Is it a replacement for a good tube clean Fender? Yes & no. It is different. I play the amp 85% clean and use really good OD boxes for more gain. No doubt Reverend is to blame for putting unreasonable expectations out there (like it can replace your Fender Twin), but the amp stands on it's own merits BEAUTIFULLY. If you want a more "classic" open back Twin sound, you can get an extension speaker cabinet. I have the Reverend Neo 2x12 cab and it definitely makes the amp sound bigger as you would imagine.
I play Gibson SG's. I play in a jamband, a funk band, a reggae band, and a rock band. I like my amps to be clear, defined and yet still have a lot of balls.
There are 3 modes in the Kingsnake:
US Mode: the Fender type setting - sort of scooped EQ with the cleanest quality to the sound. If you add a bit of gain you can NAIL a 70's Keith Richards sound. Really really cool. Think Sticky Fingers era stones, or Black Crowes. Even in this mode the amp is still more Marshall than Fender. There is a definite midrange presence that most Fenders don't have. But it can clean up great and sounds wonderful. And it DOES have a Fendery quality to it. As recommended in the manual, I use a 12AT7 in the first pre-amp slot to get more clean headroom. And I run the amp at the full 60 watts.
UK Mode: the Marshall type setting - with more gain and a push in the upper mids. VERY very realistic Marshall sounds. The amp barks with a great Plexi-ish nastyness. This is NOT JCM-900 Marshall here (although there is PLENTY of gain on tap), but more AC-DC. People have said that this is not a "metal" amp, but define metal. If metal to you is more Zeppelin than Slayer, then this amp will make you real happy. There is NOT as much gain on here as a Metallica record if that is what you are looking for. Think Classic Rock. Old Aerosmith, Kiss Alive 1, to modern bands like Jet. With the right box you can get as much gain as you want. The amps natural pre-amp gain is defined, punchy and really really sounds like that 70's hard rock Marshall sound that people are paying TOP $$$ for to Dr Z and Fargen Amps. No fuzz or fizz at all. Just warm, defined crunch. This is the thing that probably impresses most people who "ooh ah" when they first try the amp out. But I still use the US mode and get the rest of my disortion from David Barber pedals (see reviews on this site).
Low Fi Mode: Not what you would expect. This is supposed to be the old tweed "Supro" type setting. It shifts the EQ down to the lower mids and adds gain. Real "rude" sounding in a good way. Since I play with more of a clean sound I don't really use this one although I have played around with it and thought it was fun.
The point is there are LOTS of different sounds in here. The schizo switch doesn't just shift the EQ, it changes the very character of the amp.
The Reverb. This is a topic that I have seen on different forums and has been commented on here.
First let me ask: - Am I the only one here that has to keep the reverb on my Fender amp no higher than 2 or 3 because it obscures the sound? Exactly. I love Fender reverb, but many times 80% of it is unusable becasue it completely washes away your sound.
I really really like the Reverend reverb (not just the Kingsnake, but the Hellhound as well). I find it musical and it sits "just enough in the background" to color and add depth, without obscuring your tone. That said, I still only keep it at about 40% or 50% up, and there is plenty (you can stll wash away your sound if you want to). I wonder if the reviewers on here that say there isn't enough reverb are actually gigging or recording. If you sit and compare the AMOUNT of reverb to a Fender, there is less. But there is NOT less USABLE reverb. I think that is a very important distinction to make.
Reliability
:9
It seems so far to be fine. Another reviewer commented on the broken reverb. The same thing happended to me. The reverb suddenly stopped working. I called up Joe Naylor and he said there was a bunch of Accutronics reverb tanks that had a weak solder joint where the wire connects to the spring. He offered to ship me a new tank for free.
To be fair, the SAME exact thing happened to my Fender Blues Jr, and to my Rivera Fender Concert. So that is an Accutronics thing, not a Reverend thing. Dropping a new tank in there takes ten minutes.
I even went into the original reverb tank and found the wire that had become disconected. I just soldered it back on and voila! The tank works perfectly again. Again, two minutes of work.
Customer Support
:6
The truth is that Joe Naylor & company (Reverend) have stopped making amps to focus the company on guitars. When I had my reverb tank issue there were no questions asked, they just shipped me a new one. They claim that they will service all amps for the entire warranty period which by my guess will end near Dec of 2006.
I would imagine that as time goes on, they will be less and less equipped to accomodate the problems. But such is the case with companies that STILL make amps. Try calling up Fender and trying to get them to fix your 2003 Twin reissue. The best they will do is refer you to a repair place.
Joe offers a schematic to the Kingsnake that will be useful of you ever need the amp repaired.
I would also imagine that as time goes on, more people will be reading these Harmony Central reviews from the perspective of Kingsnakes (and Hellhounds) being "vintage" or "classic" amps. So just like all vintage gear, the customer support is not an issue anymore.
They were really nice to me on the phone and answered all questions. But the fact that they won't be "supporting" the amps anymore makes me have to deduct a some points here.
Overall Rating
:10
I am a pro musician (make my living playing music). I only use gear that is great sounding, reliable and convenient.
Did I mention this is an all tube, 60 watt (loud) combo amp that ONLY WEIGHS 32lbs? To give you an idea, a Twin can weigh 85 lbs. Hello. A Boogie or the like just a much or more. The weight of this little amp can only be appreciated by picking it up. It' really an amazing thing. I smile everytime I have to move it. :-)
I can walk into a gig with my guitar in one hand, gig bag with effects board on my shoulder, and my AMP in the other had - and not even be out of breath. NICE. I can park my car and make ONE trip.
The Jensen Neo speaker has to be mentioned here. It is not the only thing making the amp light (the Hellhound is almost as light and uses a ceramic All-Tone speaker), but it definitely subtracts from the weight. For those of you who are unfamiliar, the Jensen Neo speakers use a Neodymium magnet which is a much lighter magnet material. If you remember correctly, Alnico mags are also lighter than Ceramics. A ceramic magnet speaker can weigh 12 lbs or more. The Jensen Neos weigh only 5 lbs each, a huge benefit if lugging heavy amps is not your favorite passtime. The speaker sounds warm, punchy and with a nice detailed clarity in the top end. The Kingsnake circuit was designed around the Jensen Neo speaker so they perfectly compliment eachother.
Conclusion:
As many already know, the Reverend Amps are sort of legendary already. They sound great, are light, all tube and were REALLY fairly priced. Now that they are out of production, they have become somewhat of a collectors item. The Kinsnake was only in production for less than a year. How many could have possibly been made? A couple of thousand (give or take) at most?
Indeed, I have a Hellhound combo (that made me want to get a KS to begin with) that never leaves the house (I have the cool "tooled tolex" one in mint condition). I just picked up a second Kingsnake as a "backup" to my first one.
These amps are a piece of amplifier history. They have already started to go up in price and no doubt will be almost as collectible by those in the "know" as most other great sounding, well made classic amplifiers.
Like another reviewer said, I am hanging onto mine for life. When I am old & weak I can still grab this light little tube amp on the way out the door and sound great.
;-)
Product: Reverend Kingsnake 20/60 112 Combo Price Paid: US $375 used
Submitted 12/30/2005
at 07:50pm
by Ben Feller
Features
:8
Single channel with 3 way switch for more tone options, think presets of 3 different amps and the usual gain and tone configuration. Ext speaker jacks and 1-12 speaker. Standby switch, good idea, since it's an all tube amp, 6L6 tubes and 12AX7's for the preamp. Good looks. Much of it is made in China and assembled in the USA.
Sound Quality
:No Opinion
You better pick the tone you want with the selector and preamp controls where you like it best, the other two settings will be okay but you may not like them when switching between all 3, kind of like 3 channels but you have to tweak each one using the same controls. I just stick to one and it works well. Reverb is good when it works, more later. I had some rattle in the cab and had to tighten up the screws.
Reliability
:4
The Reverb tank has been replaced 2 times in less than a year, the things just die, why? Both 6L6 were replaced with Groove Tube's just before I got the amp, and all the preamp tubes were replaced with NOS Sylvania's, the original owner never used the Standby switch and the original tubes died after several months of use, he gigs every weekend. I'd rate it a little higher except for the reverb issue.
Customer Support
:1
They don't give a shit anymore it's out of production, when your warantee is up and something goes wrong, too bad I guess, find a good Tech.
Overall Rating
:No Opinion
It's a good amp for what it is, I would not buy another one, as a used amp it was a good deal, as a new amp I think it is over ratted. It came with all new tubes and sounds great with my LP and my '62 RI Strat. I haven't gigged with it yet but think it will fill the room. I like it better than my Blues Jr. but not as well as my Roland JC 50, that's just weird. I think the Roland is better sounding and works great as a medium size gig amp, and has never let me down. If this amp fell off the edge of the world and you wanted it I'd help you get it with a big push, all kidding asside, I like it but most likely will sell it and try something else.
Product: Reverend Kingsnake 20/60 112 Combo Price Paid: US $699
Submitted 10/03/2005
at 11:02pm
by Dennis
Features
:9
This wonderful little tube amp has 2 6L6 power tubes, four 12ax7 preamp tubes, and a 12 inch Jensen Neo Speaker. Single channel with a "Schizo" switch that changes the inherent voicing of the amp between American, British, and LO-Fi which sounds beefier with more bass, lower mids and less highs. Effects loop is included and also has a 60 watt/20 watt switch allowing for more breakup at lower volumes. Great for rock, blues, jazz, country, maybe metal with a good distortion pedal, but I doubt anyone who plays only metal will look for this amp. I use this amp for many different styles (jazz, blues, funk, fusion, country) and I couldn't be happier with how versatile this amp is. 60 watts is perfect for the clubs, for larger gigs I would use an extension cab to move more air (if I had one), but miking works fine. Like most users I would love to see a footswitch for the schizo funtions but I understand the reasons it was left out as a feature. With a good pedalboard this amp is capable of great things.
Sound Quality
:9
I have an array of strats I use with this amp, and they all sound wonderful through it. I use either the US setting or the Lo-Fi setting with the gain down to about 9:00, treble around 1:00, mids about 10:00, bass and presence about 2:00, and turn the volume up to the appropriate gig level.
I hit the front end with two Keeley modified Tubescreamers (808 and Baked mod) to control various levels of dirt and sustain. I can get very close to those Robben Ford/ Larry Carlton tones very easily with this setup. The only other effects I use are a Maxon pt 999 Phase tone, and run a Boss tuner and delay into the effects loop. This amp does capture the clean and semi distorted Fender-y sounds everyone loves (Deluxe and Vibroluxe come to mind) and with the pedals (it takes pedals fabulously) you can build on that sound with various textures. It is a very honest and unforgiving amp; it is very touch sensitive and reproduces your guitars inherent tone, the better the guitar and pickups the better sound you will get! It is also fairly quiet, even with both of the Tubescreamers on (though that is in part to Robert Keeley's mastery as well...for another review).
I haven't used the UK setting much. This setting increases the upper mids to get that more Marshall-y sound, which I dont use but does sound very good... I prefer to start with a cleaner tone and add mids and gain with the tubescreamers. It would be on the UK setting that I would say the amp would start to have enough hair on it to use on its own, with the amp up VERY loud. The Reverend site has some wonderful sound clips of the amp, and there is a setting that gets a very good old Van Halen tone without any pedals on the UK setting.....so this amp can do way more than I use it for, no doubt.
Reliability
:9
I have had the amp for two months and have gigged extensively with it. I never gig without a backup, and for that I have my trusty Tech 21 Trademark 60 which hasn't let me down in 6 yrs of steady playing and touring. The amp is simple in design, and would be easy to fix if something broke or burned out. I will stay on top of the tubes and I don't forsee any major problems, time will tell. I can't tell how much abuse it can take because I dont abuse my gear. It seems well built and cleverly designed, despite its 32 lb weight which is a plus in my book.
Customer Support
:9
Well, the day I bought the amp is the day they decided to stop making them. They say they will do all warranty repairs within the year after I bought it if anything goes wrong. I haven't had to contact them yet but I've heard only good things.
Overall Rating
:10
I've been playing for 20+ years and have tried or owned literally one of every maufacturers amps I can think of....(well not Dumble and the other boutiquers), but Fenders, Marshalls, Peaveys, Carvins, Hughes and Kettners, Rolands, Tubeworks, Tech 21....oww my wallet hurts. This amp is the closest I've been to getting the sound in my head. I love everything about it and find it very practical for what I use it for. Ive reached a stage in my playing where I generally sound like me through most rigs, so its nice to find an amp that adds that special something. Its really a shame that Reverend has stopped making these, I would love to find another someday to go stereo or have as a backup, but they are already skyrocketing in value as we speak. I saw one on ebay a week or so ago going for around $900......I will hold on to mine for life, even if I don't use it anymore someday. Its a nice piece of amp history and a wonderful amp for its size, weight, and price.
Product: Reverend Kingsnake 20/60 112 Combo Price Paid: US $699
Submitted 08/20/2005
at 08:25pm
by Anonymous
Features
:10
It has all the features that have been posted previously.
Sound Quality
:10
I had a '67 Fender Twin Reverb that was wonderful but just too loud for the majority of siuations I played in. I also would have to put some overdrive in front of the twin to get a "bite" when I dug into the guitar strings. The Reverend does what I have always dreamed of that it's very clean and resonate but it's just a little fine tuning to get the gritty sound when needed. All the knobs allow you to turn them a little and only a little bit happens (when you just what a hair-it's there!), but everything is interactive. Therefore you can make your Kingsnake amp sound the way you intend it to be.
The US setting is a Deluxe reverb. The Lo-Fi is a Deluxe with an overdrive in front of it, and the UK sounds better than my Marshall combo (AVT 50). It has for me the perfect Marshall crunch tone.
I does take stomp boxes better than any amp I've had before but it sounds so sweet, so "right" alone. I dig the reverb so very much! It is just the right amount of seasoning to add to the delicious tone.
This amp has taught me that the amp/ speaker is the most important part of the signal chain.
Reliability
:No Opinion
Too new.
Customer Support
:9
Ordered direct and the customer service was top notch. Took 3 weeks to get shipped out but kinda part of the cool factory direct made for me thing. Free freight was a nice incentive, thanks!
Overall Rating
:10
I read the reviews here and was impressed enough to order. I do think I have found the amp that will be the last one. If I need more, an extension cabinet will do the job.
Product: Reverend Kingsnake 20/60 112 Combo Price Paid: N/A
Submitted 08/11/2005
at 02:14pm
by Anonymous